A large dilapidated building with a rusting sign that said “Pesantren Merdeka”, the letters were barely hanging on, towered over Dafa. It was his old Islamic Boarding School he used to go with his brother Adi. The bittersweet memories of his childhood left a bad taste in his mouth as he realizes what was left of this place he once called home. A wasteland of broken pieces of concrete and empty promises.
[[Continue|It's Getting Dark]]It’s nearing sunset and it will get dark soon and standing in front of his old home he recalls the importance of praying before the sun sets. It was something he and his brother would do before they headed to the mosque for Maghrib prayer. He remembered how Adi would tease him about being afraid of creatures that lurked in the dark that would come to get him. The local folklore stories would always cause the hair to stand on the back of his neck, but Adi would always pray beside him and Dafa would calm down.
{
(set:$sanity to 50)
(display:"UI")
(display:"Check Sanity")
}
[[Don't Pray]]
[[Pray]]But if prayers worked then why is Adi’s mangled body 6 feet below the ground. Dafa gritted his teeth and clenched his fist, he was old enough to not get scared by silly ghost stories when there are things more terrifying in the real world than some white lady. Dafa pushed through and entered the place he once called home.
{
(set:$sanity to $sanity - 10)
(display:"UI")
(display:"Check Sanity")
(set:$prayer to 'false')
}
[[Continue|Hallway]]Dafa clasped his hands together and brought them close to his face. He closed his eyes and mumbled out the old archaic scriptures he remembered. A warm feeling bloomed inside of his chest as he finished the prayer. Dafa let out a sigh of relief and looked around, the sun falling behind the lush jungle. He stared at the edge of the jungle and the banana trees that served as the border between our world and theirs. He’s not afraid anymore.
{
(set:$sanity to $sanity + 10)
(display:"UI")
(display:"Check Sanity")
(set:$prayer to 'true')
}
[[Continue|Hallway]]
A layer of dust caked everything inside the school, old wooden furniture left untouched for years, it was like looking at a snapshot of the past. The halls that once were filled with young boys playing, praying and chanting hymns now laid empty and bare. The life that once was there has fallen victim to the eternal dust. Dafa looked around and noticed that the framed photos still hung on the walls.
{
(display:"UI")
(display:"Check Sanity")
}
[[Inspect The Photos]]
[[Don't Inspect The Photos]](float-box: "==X", "==Y")
[Sanity: (meter:bind $sanity, 100, "x",blue)]
{(if:$sanity <= 0)
[(go-to:"The End")]
}
Dafa fell victim to the shackles of his mind.
[[Restart...?|The Start]] Dafa walked towards the wall, he brought his hand up and wiped away the dust. He recognized this one, it was when his brother gained the title of ‘Hafiz’. A title only given to those who memorized the holy scripture and book. Dafa remembered that day, the test lasted all day and Adi had to chant the melodic hymns without any mistake. The memory was as clear as day in his mind. Dafa wiped off more of the dust and noticed mold had grown on the photo, black spots tainted the pictures obscuring the faces of everyone including his brother except his own. Dafa’s smiling face from years ago was left untouched by the mold, his younger self beamed back at him as everything around him had succumbed to the inevitable rot.Dafa sneered at the sight of those dust caked frames after all there was no point in getting sidetracked. What use is there to reminisce on a ghost, he came here for answers and he won’t get his answers from staring at old rotting pictures.
{
(set:$sanity to $sanity + 5)
(set:$key to 1)
(display:"UI")
(display:"Check Sanity")
}
[[Continue|The Door]]Dafa sneered at the sight of those dust caked frames after all there was no point in getting sidetracked. What use is there to reminisce on a ghost, he came here for answers and he won’t get his answers from staring at old rotting pictures.
{
(set:$sanity to $sanity - 10)
(display:"UI")
(display:"Check Sanity")
}
[[Continue|The Door]] Here it was.
The door in front of Dafa served as a barrier between the present and the past. Behind it was the shared dorm room he and his brother lived in. Everything about his brother was still there frozen in time like how everything was. Dafa pushed against the door but it wouldn’t budge.
It was locked.
{
(display:"UI")
(display:"Check Sanity")
}
[[Push Again]]
[[Check Surrounding]]
(if:$key is 1)[[Use Key]]
With a frustrated groan Dafa pushed again, and again, and again. He slammed his body against the door with all the strength he could muster. He needed to get in. He’s so close and he will do anything to get into that room. In one last blow Dafa broke the old lock of the door and tumbled into the room, he fell onto the disgusting ground, dust kicked up upon his impact and filled his lungs. He was in pain but at least he was in.
{
(set:$sanity to $sanity - 10)
(display:"UI")
(display:"Check Sanity")
}
[[Continue|Inside The Room]]Everything is delicate around him, Dafa needs to be careful in this old building. He might find something of use outside, perhaps a stray piece of metal or a brick that would be laying around the fields outside.
{
(display:"UI")
(display:"Check Sanity")
(set:$sanity to $sanity - 10)
}
[[Continue|The Fields]]
Dafa remembered the key he picked up. It served to be useful after all.
{
(set:$sanity to $sanity + 5)
(display:"UI")
(display:"Check Sanity")
}
[[Continue|Inside The Room]]
(if: $sanity >= 30) [The rusted goal post only served as a reminder of the fleeting past. Dafa recalled the times he and his brother would play futsal in the field alongside the other students. He remembered studying in his room and hearing the laughter and voices of kids playing outside coming through his window. Right, his window. Dafa walked towards the side of the building and there it was the window to his room. He grabbed onto the ledge and hopped into the room.
[[Continue|Inside The Room]]]
(else:)[The rusted goal post only served as a reminder of the fleeting past. Beyond the goal post were the banana trees that served as the barrier between the open field and the jungle behind. The kids would always tease about the ghosts that live in the banana trees. What a load of crap. Dafa clicked his tongue at the memory as he returned to his search but a rustling sound caught his attention. He looked up and saw a figure standing by the jungle’s edge
“Adi?” Dafa choked on his words at the sight of his brother.
[[Run to Him.]]] (if:$sanity <= 30)[Dafa walked around the room, furniture were turned over and pieces of clothing thrown around like the occupants were in a hurry to leave. Of course why wouldn’t they be. This school, once a safe haven turned into a cursed land and those who dared stay would soon die. So of course he and his brother left. They had to if they wanted to survive but look at them now. Dafa wondered if things could’ve gone differently if they had stayed. In the corner of the room thrown to the side was a book, it was thin and barely held together.
[[Pick Up The Book]]]
(else:)[Everything was still in its same place, tucked away neatly and in line. Chairs pushed into the table and books placed in order in their shelves except for one that laid on the ground. Though Dafa’s attention was focused on the study table that they shared and the shoebox that sat on it.
[[Open The Shoebox]]]Dafa ran to his brother and held him in a tight embrace. He closed his eyes and nestled his face in his big brother’s chest. He’ll never let go. A bloody hand ran its fingers through Dafa’s hair, holding him close.
Dafa will ignore the strong scent of jasmine mixed with iron and he will ignore the dripping sensation on his head.
Dafa will ignore the blood seeping into his shirt.
He will ignore it all.
He will never let go now.
{
(set:$sanity to $sanity - 10)
(display:"UI")
}
[[Never Let Go]]Never Let Go.
{
(set:$sanity to 0)
(display:"UI")
}
[[...]]
(display:"Check Sanity")Dafa picked up the book from the ground and blew the dust off it. ‘Buku Iqro’ the title was written in gold ink and calligraphy. He flipped open to the first page and scanned the contents.
“This book belongs to Adi Rizqi Ibrahim. Class 3-A”
Dafa continued to flip through the pages, everything was normal as expected until sandwiched between some of the pages was a lock of hair wrapped in parchment paper covered in sigils and tied with what looked to be a dried out umbilical cord. Dafa carefully picked up the object and placed it into his palms. The black hair was silky and soft to the touch, unlike his or his brother’s curly brown hair. Dafa closed the book and noticed some writing at the bottom. His nose scrunched and fist clenched around the hair when he saw the words written in red ink.
“Teacher Supervisor: Ustadz Faizal.”
Of course. You can return to the past but no one would be waiting there for you, but that won’t stop Dafa from hunting him down in the present. After all there is something left he must return back to its rightful owner.
[[End.]]
Dafa approached the shoebox and opened it, revealing the contents inside were nothing but documents. His brother’s death certificate to be exact and a photo of a mansion. The photo was his brother standing in front of the mansion, a large grin adorned his face as he gave the cameraman a thumbs up. Dafa flipped the photo over and saw ‘Lawang Sewu’ written on the other side.
He knows where to go next.
Dafa placed all the contents back into the box before bringing it along with him. He took one last glance at his childhood room. You can return to the past but no one would be waiting there for you. Dafa knows that, he knows it all too well. That is why he must leave this place behind for the last time.
He can’t return here again.
There is nothing left for him here.
[[End.]]
{
<script> var audio= document.createElement('audio'); audio.src = 'https://static.wixstatic.com/mp3/3f105a_857f20817bc746f4ab791a246760d1fd.mp3' ;
audio.loop = true; audio.play(); </script>
}[[Play Again?|The Start]]